Pest Control

[wendy G]

Hi
We are soon to move into a Semi detached landed property, and as part of our negotiations we have agreed to be responsible for the pest control of the property. Can anyone advise me what pests need controlling, by what methods and how frequently, and also of course how much this is going to cost.

Thanks for any help you can offer.
Wendy

[BoardManager]

I would be careful with this clause. Pests would include termites which are extremely difficult to detect and to get rid of. The cost of a good termite detection and destruction program, which includes yearly visits, can be expensive.

Other household pests are mosquitoes and crawlies. And annoying neigbours. Which can be expensive to exterminate too!

[Bugs]

We use CleanEnviron Pest Control sorry don't have the number handy but they are in the book. They fog our detached property for mosquitoes, check all the drains for signs of breeding, check for termites and ants, etc.

You might ask the landlord who they use since they will have a record of previous treatments. I think we pay about $800 per year under our contract for six visits a year. We did have a hornets nest thingy which we had to have immolated (sp?) which cost about $150 but that's life in the tropics.

Maintenance in a house is significantly more expensive than a condo but so many other benefits.

We did find that by being good housekeepers and checking for standing water (around outdoor toys etc) that we have relatively few problems with mosquitoes and crawly things (I think we've seen 3 cockroaches in 3 years and they looked a bit lost)

Good luck!

[PhilM]

Wendy - please take note of the Board Manager's warning.

Unless the clause is specifically in relation to prevention of mosquito breeding sites (i.e. standing water they could lay eggs in),if you were unlucky enough to get termite damage to the property during your lease you could end up with major bills.